1. Field of the Invention
This invention is related to an improvement in the structure of a joystick and in particular to one which can control the direction control unit and acceleration control unit synchronously.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The conventional joystick is a computing lever controlling a cursor, i.e. a hand-held control stick that allows a player to control the movements of a cursor on a computer screen or a symbol in a video game. The conventional joysticks 100 (see FIGS. 5, 6 and 7) generally include a base 300, a handle 200 mounted on the base 300 and a plurality of function keys 400 arranged on the base 300. However, such joysticks suffer from the following drawback:
1. As shown in FIG. 6, the direction control unit is arranged within the handle and controlled by rotating the handle clockwise or counterclockwise. Nevertheless, as the handle 200 is also used for controlling the vector variation in X-axis and Y-axis and is controlled by the wrist, the handle 200 will often be operated in mistake. Furthermore, the handle is not ergonomically designed and will often cause injury to the user.
2. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, the direction control unit is either arranged on the handle or the base. Nonetheless, it is necessary for a user to use his left or right hand finger to control the direction control unit so that when the user controls the direction control unit, he will be very difficult to control other function keys.
3. In addition, the direction control unit and the acceleration control unit of the conventional joysticks are separately arranged in different positions thereby making it almost impossible to control the two units synchronously and also increasing the manufacturing cost.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved joystick which can obviate and mitigate the above-mentioned drawbacks.
This invention is related to an improvement in the structure of a joystick.
It is the primary object of the present invention to provide an improved joystick which can be used for controlling the direction control unit and acceleration control unit synchronously.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved joystick which can be conveniently operated by one hand.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved joystick which is compact in size and low in cost.
According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a joystick structure includes an ergonomic handle, a base on which is mounted the handle, and a mini joystick fitted in a cavity of the handle and including a button and a direction control unit, the direction control unit being provided with a control rod which is movable in two perpendicular directions, the control rod being able to return to an original position thereof when released for controlling direction, the control rod being able to stop at any position for controlling acceleration.
The foregoing object and summary provide only a brief introduction to the present invention. To fully appreciate these and other objects of the present invention as well as the invention itself, all of which will become apparent to those skilled in the art, the following detailed description of the invention and the claims should be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Throughout the specification and drawings identical reference numerals refer to identical or similar parts.
Many other advantages and features of the present invention will become manifest to those versed in the art upon making reference to the detailed description and the accompanying sheets of drawings in which a preferred structural embodiment incorporating the principles of the present invention is shown by way of illustrative example.